The Georgia Supreme Court made the decision to remove Douglas County Probate Judge Christina Peterson from office and ban her from holding any judicial role in the state for seven years after a probe into her behavior revealed a pattern of judicial misconduct. Peterson, who faced 50 counts of alleged misconduct, was found guilty of 28 of those counts and was deemed to have shown a flagrant disregard for the law, court rules, and judicial conduct rules. The high court concluded that Peterson’s repeated violations of judicial rules and inappropriate behavior both in and out of the courthouse were not in line with the decorum and temperament required of a judge.
The investigation into Peterson’s behavior revealed several instances of misconduct, including holding a woman who appealed to her for an error on her marriage certificate in criminal contempt and sentencing her to the maximum jail time without justification. Peterson was also accused of allowing unauthorized individuals to enter the county courthouse after hours without proper screening and using deputies to work overtime on her behalf, costing taxpayers. Additionally, she was reported to have engaged in hostile exchanges with neighbors at her homeowners association meeting while suing the association. The overall pattern of violations of judicial rules led to the decision to remove her from the bench.
In a separate incident that garnered media attention, Peterson was arrested for allegedly shoving an off-duty Atlanta police officer outside a nightclub, resulting in charges of simple battery against a police officer and obstruction of a law enforcement officer. The altercation occurred when Peterson interfered with the officer as he was trying to de-escalate a situation involving a security guard escorting a woman out of the club. Despite claims that Peterson was trying to help the woman who was reportedly attacked, she was arrested and placed in the back of a police cruiser where she shouted expletives and refused to provide her name.
Peterson’s attorney maintained that she was only acting as a good Samaritan in the nightclub incident and believed that she would eventually be exonerated of the charges as more facts come to light during the investigation. However, the Georgia Supreme Court did not take into consideration the arrest incident in its decision to remove Peterson from office, as it was not part of the investigation into her misconduct. The court focused solely on the pattern of violations of judicial rules and misconduct that Peterson exhibited while in office, ultimately determining that her behavior was not in line with the standards expected of a judge and the integrity of the judicial system.
The removal of Peterson from office by the Georgia Supreme Court and the subsequent ban on holding any judicial post in the state for seven years comes after a lengthy probe into her behavior while in office. The court’s decision was based on the findings of a Judicial Qualifications Commission investigation, which uncovered a pattern of judicial misconduct that included violations of court rules and a disregard for the law. Despite claims of innocence from Peterson and her attorney, the evidence and findings of the investigation led to the conclusion that her actions were not acceptable for someone serving in a judicial role, ultimately resulting in her disbarment from the judiciary.
